Surely He Knows
by Sparks' Magic
Summary: Antonio is very attracted to his friend Lovino. He is also very clueless, so Lovino has to resort to less than subtle methods. Human / College AU.
1. Prologue

The material slipped down Lovino's hip, showing clear olive skin, and Antonio blushed as he took too much notice over the way the muscle moved and rippled under his flesh. Realising what Antonio was looking at, the teenager pulled his shorts down even further, the curve of his ass making Antonio's blood boil.

"Like it?" he muttered in a sultry voice, and oh god; that accent made his knees go weak. Taking a step backwards, Antonio shook his head, hair flying around his face and into his eyes. "Um, Lovi, you are my best friend, but really, we're in a shower metres away from our classmates… Seriously, you shouldn't joke like that…" Lovino frowned, pulling his shorts back up onto his hips.

"Lighten up, bastard, I was kidding." He reached down to pull on his shoes, and Antonio's eyes widened as Lovino's shirt slowly rose up his back, revealing waaaay too much skin. Lovino couldn't not know what he was doing, surely? His movements were so slow, and all showed off some part of his perfect body. He lifted his arm and the muscle flexed, he smiled slightly to himself and his lips just looked so goddamn soft, what would they look like if he were to just press himself into that pink mouth- God he needed to wash out his brain. Antonio could feel the burn between his legs and he turned around quickly, trying not to do anything, praying his body wouldn't do that to him.

It did.

**Shit.**

Blushing so hard his face felt like it was on fire, Antonio finished changing in seconds and ran out of the sweaty room full of teenage boys. Lovino just stood bent over, smirking as he tugged his jacket over his slim shoulders. That was fun.


	2. Drunken Mishaps

Antonio ran into his room, locking the door behind with shaking hands. He leaned against the door frame and ran his hand through his hair, breathing hard.

Unfortunately for him, that wasn't the only thing that was hard.

Antonio groaned, and walked unsteadily over the moth eaten sofa in his room, making sure that he had definitely turned the key the whole way in, so there wouldn't be any interruptions like the last time he had tried to get himself off.

Only this time... Well, he was doing this over an actual, real person, wasn't he? And to make everything just that much more peachy, it was a _guy_. Yes, so he had been aware of his very-gay mind set for the past two years, but he'd never actually... Crushed on a real man? Lusted after one?

Whatever these feelings were, Antonio didn't like them very much – although they were definitely going to make _this _that much sweeter. Slumping down onto the sofa, Antonio sighed deeply and slowly unzipped his jeans, pulling them down to just below his knees. His boxers came next, soft fabric catching on the head of his erection. He hissed at the friction, then wrapped his hand around the base, squeezing slightly as he did so.

That was when he heard footsteps outside his door, then a sharp knock. Panicking, Antonio pulled up his jeans and boxers haphazardly, zipping the fly up and pulling his hoodie down as far as it would stretch to save at least some of his pride. He hopped over to the door, opened it a crack and poked his head through the small gap it created.

"Hey, Antonio? You left your earphones in the changing room, you idiot, so I thought you might want them back." The matter-of-fact voice tinged with that unmistakable Italian accent brought Antonio's blush back full force, and he flustered about before deciding he should probably open the door.

Lovino's eyes were wide and oh-so-prettily glittering with something Antonio found he didn't want to know about. Instead, he just snatched the earphones out of the out-stretched hands and stuffed them in his back pocket. Lovino was still standing there almost expectantly, so Antonio blurted his next words out without any real thought.

"Do you want to come in? I was just... making... coffee."

Lovino smiled, and stepped past Antonio into the little college apartment he had been living in for the past two or three months. The main room itself wasn't a total tip, although it was fairly obviously lived in (Antonio cringed internally at the sight of a dirty t-shirt just thrown casually over the arm rest of the sofa he had been about to... you know on). Antonio headed in a slight daze towards his compact kitchen, where he went through the motions of coffee-making without real thought. Years of hungover morning had taught him to make the bitter drink in the vilest of moods, so a little terror wasn't affecting his ability to do that, but it was making his thoughts swirl into a positive storm of panic.

_Oh God, oh **God**, he's just sitting there, what do I do, what do I say, this is starting to feel like a very bad case of deja vu...!_

Trying to quell his shaking hands, Antonio took the two mugs of coffee to the sofa, where he sat a little way away from the figure next to him. Lovino sighed a little into the mug, his fingers squeezing the handle of the mug slightly.

"Smells nice," he muttered. Antonio startled at the low voice, and the noise made Lovino look up at him and speak at a normal pitch, " S'it some sort of posh stuff? Mine smells like chemical crap, while this is..." His eyebrows furrowed a little as he thought of an accurate word, "I don't know... Nice." he finished lamely, with a quick smile at Antonio. Antonio sipped his drink in amusement, still uncomfortable but relaxing a little from the previous awkwardness.

The two carried on talking for the better part of three hours (during which time Antonio's little problem had fixed itself and he could finally just enjoy Lovino's company). Time slipped from late afternoon into evening, a light autumnal twilight hazing the room. At some point Antonio had broken out his stash of beer, and they were on their third or fourth bottles by the time Lovino had loosened up enough to laugh unashamedly and Antonio had stopped caring about the consequences of his words. It was around this time they also started falling into dangerous subjects.

Like girls. And guys.

"Soooooo..." said Lovino with a wicked grin, "What's your type then? I've never seen you with a girl before. Brunette? Blonde? Hey, are you an ass or boobs type of guy~?" Antonio flushed, but the alcohol was making him forget who he was talking to.

"More like ass or cock, Lovi~! I'm about as gay as they come to be honest."

"I totally knew that, since it would easier to miss a massive pink elephant than your obvious attraction to _my_ wonderful ass. I was just waiting for you to take the stick out of your own and tell me that."

"You what?!" Antonio spluttered, practically spewing beer out of his nose in shock. Lovino had steadily crept further up the sofa and closer to Antonio during the last few minutes, and he was now virtually sitting on Antonio's lap.

"Hell yeah, bastard. And oh look; I'm still waiting now." Lovino cocked an eyebrow and tilted his head, staring deep into Antonio's eyes. His hazel pupils glimmered with what even Antonio could tell was blatant lust. Antonio licked his lips, watching those pretty eyes follow the movement purposefully.

"So, I might have a bit of a thing for your ass, Lovino. And... And..." he couldn't continue with that weird lump that had suddenly decided to take up residence in his throat.

"And...?" prompted Lovino slyly.

"And... I might have a slight thing for therestofyoutoo." Antonio finished the last part of the sentence in a rush, closing his eyes tightly at end. He was terrified of what Lovino would do, despite Lovino's clear attraction to him back.

Of all the things he was expecting, a brush of lips against his own was _definitely _not one of them.

* * *

**AN - I am SO SORRY this took so long to update and yes I know it was going to be a twoshot or whatever, it's just running away with me. There will actually be smut(ish) at some point but I am too terrified to actually write it. **

**Yeah... I'm a wimp.**

**And I will not take so long to update next time, promise.**


	3. Cockblocked by Pizza

The kiss was chaste; a brush of lips, barely a hint of pressure. A flash of warmth, then it was all over. But to Antonio, it was a complete and utter overturning of his world.

Lovino moved away and stared into hazy green eyes with his own. Unanswered questions flashed through them, worry and panic marring the cocky and self-assured look he had sported so sexily earlier. Seeing Lovino's expression, Antonio came to a decision.

He smiled and leaned forward, pressing his lips against the younger man's again, this time harder. An audible sigh of relief escaped Lovino's mouth and he cracked open his lips, allowing Antonio's tongue to slide through into his mouth. The two swayed back and forth on the sofa, ignoring the holes and patches of stuffing being pushed out of them as they tangled their tongues with growing urgency. Lovino ran his fingers through the knots and tangles of Antonio's hair, the rough locks tugging and pulling around the tips. He pulled harder, deepening the kiss and laying directly behind Antonio, who gripped the side of the sofa with one hand and let his other trail over Lovino's chest.  
The need to breathe was beginning to overpower the urge to touch and kiss and _move_ however much Antonio tried not to think about it, and he slid his tongue from between Lovino's lips in reluctance. Inhaling deeply, he managed an uncertain, but extremely pleased, smile. Staring up at him with a dazed expression, Lovino blew out his breath onto those kiss-puffy, cherry-red lips. A flush of the same colour danced its way along Antonio's cheekbones (_and oh, what pretty cheekbones they are too, _thought Lovino) and he leaned in again, pressing his mouth on Lovino's open one. This time there was no hesitance and the heat that had begun to pool in Lovino's stomach fell even lower, spiralling into a steady beat between his legs. Being on top of Lovino, Antonio noticed his arousal with a flash of panic, then a flood of relief. He allowed himself to relax and decided to try something more... fun with the gorgeous man flushed and warm and soft beneath him. Breaking the kiss for a second time, he moved his hips lower at a snail's pace, biting his lip and peering into Lovino's eyes for any sign of uncomfort or the word 'no'.

The hazel orbs only screamed with desire. Hips grazed with a butterfly's touch and then-

The sound of a fist banging on the door broke them apart.

"Good evening, this is your delivery from Grandpa Rome's Pizzeria? 2 extra large triple meat feasts and 2 two litre cokes..." Antonio rolled his eyes in frustration. He recognised the man's slight accent, but put the thought out of his mind. The more important thing right now was that this delivery fucker had interrupted him and Lovino and he was _not happy. _With a whispered apology to Lovino, he stumbled off of the sofa, checking his reflection in the backlit window to make sure he didn't look as debauched as he felt. His lips were red and a little puffy but it wasn't too obvious. Drunk however... _Yep, _thought Antonio, _I do look a mess. Probably smell it too. Screw it, I'll live._ He reached the door just as the person on the other side made to knock again, obviously impatient and fed up that he wasn't being answered. Antonio ended up opening the door with a bang as the blonde man started forward and they tumbled into each other.

"What the hell do you think you're doing slamming open the fucking door like that, ow-"

"Ouch, Jesus _Christ_ that _hurt_, get off me-"

Antonio shoved the blonde off him and back into the corridor, where he had a perfect view of the man's face; a face he did in fact recognise. Apparently, the other man recognised him too.

"Francis, what are you doing here-"

"'Tonio, I wasn't expecting to see you in a Uni dorm-"

Both men stopped as they started speaking at the same time again, then burst into laughter. As they did, Antonio looked properly at Francis for the first time in over 3 years. His blonde hair was longer and tied back behind his head in a loose ponytail, while chin was decorated in a light stubble. Blue eyes as expressive as ever took in the sight of Antonio's attire, but before long the happiness gave way to something potentially far more dangerous; curiosity.

"So..." Francis leant against the door-frame with a hand on the top of the bag that Antonio had only just noticed, "Now we've got that part over with, we have business to do. I have your pizzas and want to know why you need 2 extra large pizzas when you appear to be all alone...?"

It was at that moment that Lovino appeared from behind Antonio, eyebrows furrowed into a deep frown and arms crossed. Francis raised one of his own perfectly shaped eyebrows at his rumpled clothing, but thankfully for Antonio, refrained from speaking. Instead, he just stared with a friendly, if cool, expression.

The silence lasted well over a minute before Antonio cleared his throat, having pieced together exactly what had just occurred.

"Um, Lovino, this is Francis. He was one of my best friends in school, and he is trying to deliver us pizzas we never ordered." Here, he stopped, gesturing deliberately towards Francis, who grinned sheepishly in understanding and slight embarrassment. "Francis, this is Lovino. He's... um... my... er..." Antonio waved his hands in a vague gesture, trying to find a suitable term for the younger man he'd been snogging for the better part of ten minutes. 'Boyfriend' wasn't right, but just calling Lovino a friend might upset him, and he really wanted to carry on with the whole kissing thing.

Lovino cut in with a sigh. "We're fucking."

An awkward silence took hold of the door way again. Francis licked his bottom lip slowly, then snorted in quiet laughter.

"So let me get this straight. You, and him, are fucking, and I interrupted your... little moment, no? Because I got the wrong address for a pizza delivery. That is one _hell_ of a mistake."

"Yeah, bastard, that's right," Lovino muttered in a low voice, "One _hell_ of a mistake. But it's going to be an even bigger mistake if you don't get THE FUCK OUT OF HERE AND CARRY ON WITH YOUR FUCKING JOB!" He was screaming by the end of his little tirade, and even Antonio was taken aback. Ushering a fuming Lovino back inside the flat, he mimed for Francis to wait a moment. The man rolled his eyes, but didn't move; instead, he pulled a mobile out of his pocket and tapped away at the bright screen with one hand.

The sound of footsteps returning made him slip the phone back into his pocket, where it chimed with the sound of an incoming text. Francis made a mental note to check it when he was alone.

Antonio cleared his throat again, blushing far more than before.

"Look, I'm sorry about all this, Fran. We're both more than a little tipsy so... yeah. Why don't we meet up when neither of us are otherwise occupied? Let me put my number into your mobile."

Francis smiled brightly, pulling his phone back out of his pocket and unlocking it with a few swipes. He also removed the message notification from where Antonio could see it.

The two men exchanged numbers and promised to meet up at the next weekend. As Francis turned and left, hand waving over his shoulder in goodbye, Antonio felt a rush of tension leave his body. It had been lovely to see his friend again, yes, but... There was a gorgeous man willing and ready before, and now said gorgeous man was sleeping. Alright, he was sleeping in his bed, but Antonio wasn't some sort of disgusting pervert, was he?

Life was just _trying _to cockblock him.

* * *

**AN - SO, I am back! Sorry I have posted in such a long time, but I've just started my exam years and I wanted to at least start the year by handing in homework on time, as well as trying to write a thing for my friend's birthday. But hey, I am here now. **


	4. Hiding in toilets isn't the best plan

Antonio was sitting on the lid of a toilet seat in the single cubicle of the corner shop's toilet, his hands pushing his dark hair into a messy pile. Trying to slow his racing heart, he breathed deeply, not caring that the smell of other people's pee and disinfectant chemicals were making his eyes water. The dim yellow bulb only just illuminated the room, it's on-off cord dangling helplessly and swinging from where Antonio had yanked it in terror when the door had slammed shut, encasing him in total darkness. Although he'd run in the tiny room as an emergency escape route, he was beginning to think that maybe he should have hidden behind a shelf instead. Much safer.

Sighing loudly, he dragged both hands back down his face, catching and pulling on his bottom lip. He stared at the ceiling and pondered on what on Earth had led him into hiding in a toilet to hide from the one person he had been desperate to see.

Three days had passed since the night when Francis had turned up, but Antonio was in a position awfully similar to the one he had been stuck in for the past three months: no boyfriend; no social life; far much homework. Lovino had been avoiding him like the plague since the morning after the drinking incident, when they had arrived to their shared biology lecture together, only to come face to face with Francis again. Needless to say, he had been loud, flirty and far too open with his facts, announcing to the whole of the group waiting impatiently outside that he had managed to "cockblock their mating session"; their classmates being the young, curious and socially starved vultures all teenagers truly are had immediately flocked to Francis and his stories.

Lovino melted down under the sheer embarrassment, not as bold without liquid courage backing him up, and had run away, avoiding contact with everyone.

Unfortunately for Antonio, this had included himself. Fortunately, he really didn't mind hiding out for a little while, until the hype had calmed down, and had followed Lovino's lead.

This meant they'd spent the next three days trying everything they could to avoid each other, even going to the extremes of running into cramped, technically 'Staff-Only' toilets of the local corner shops when they both happened to be in there looking for not-mouldy bread.

Which was why Antonio had been inside said Staff-Only toilet for around half a hour; facing his problems took more courage than he owned.

The shopkeeper had knocked on the door around fifteen minutes after he had locked himself in, inquiring as to whether Antonio was throwing up or not.  
He hadn't been sure whether the correct answer was yes or no. It felt to him as if everything he'd eaten in the past day was trying to force its way through his throat, blocking off any attempt to push air into his lungs.

It wasn't that he was scared, as such, Antonio thought, just that Lovino terrified him more than anything else in the world. Including spiders (and weren't they just horrible motherfuckers).

Another soft knock at the door startled Antonio out of his pity-party, and he brought his eyes back down from the bumps and peeling paint decorating the toilet ceiling to the equally peeling paint on the door. After a second of silence, he answered with a shaky, "Yeah?"

A young woman's voice echoed in, tinged with curiosity and worry, "Are you okay in there? Do you need any medicine?" Antonio's muscles all relaxed; some people were honestly too nice to random strangers.

"Um... No, I'm fine. Thanks. I'll be, erm, going now. Sorry." He heaved his legs up slowly, ignoring the fact that they had cramped up horribly from sitting in the same uncomfortable position for the past half an hour and unlocked the door, wincing a little as the daylight streaming in from the wide windows assaulted his eyes. A soft squeak reminded Antonio of the woman, and he turned to her, flashing a friendly smile.

In the back of his mind, he dimly registered that she was an exceptionally pretty young lady, about his age, with a cascading mass of chocolate brown hair and shocking green eyes similar to his own. Her uniformed blue shirt marked her as a shop assistant, which he was more grateful for than he should have been. Had a customer been worried about why he'd locked himself inside a toilet he would've been more than a little concerned.

A minute of silence passed, until her open mouthed, glassy eyed staring began to unnerve him. Even her eyebrows were inching their way up her forehead.

"Is there something on my face?" he asked.

The eyebrows rose higher, and the woman's voice was breathy when she replied, "No, there is nothing wrong with your face _at all_."

"Oh. Good." Antonio stuck his hands in his pockets, rocking awkwardly on the balls of his feet, "Um. Thanks for letting me borrow your toilet." With a small wave, he moved back into the shop, searching the shelves for the bread and milk he'd wanted in the first place. He could feel the woman's eyes on the back of his neck even as he moved out of her eyeline and behind the rows of crisps and chocolate bars. Something about her gaze reminded Antonio of a tiger right before it was about to pounce on an unsuspecting …... and he wanted more than ever to just find his way home and pig out on crisps.

When he brought his bags to the checkout, the brunette was at the till, still staring straight at him.

When he left the shop and practically sprinted away, he felt her eyes burning straight through him.

Elizabeta continued to ogle after the young man as he practically strutted out of the shop, then whipped her mobile out from her bra (where she hid it during working hours), tapping out a message to her friend.

_Eli B, theres a sex-on-legs hot guy strutting around town that I never knew existed. Issue! _

The reply pinged in almost instantly.

_ O.M.G! Where? Got to see this. Is he a collge guy?_

_Eliza Looks about 17 so yeah probs is. WE MUST FIND HIM_

_Bella Mission accepted. Youre at work rn right? TTYL?_

_Eliza HELL YEAH. Get the others ready~_

"Elizabeta! Off that damned phone, now!" Her boss' grumpy voice forced its way through the walls of his office, muffled by the thick plaster but still clear enough to be understandable.

Eliza smirked, stuffing it back down her top as gracefully as she could. She swore to anyone that would listen that her boss had super-hearing. But today, she wasn't interested in how he knew she was texting from in the office: She had a new game to play. Who was this mysterious cutie, and why did he decide to hide in a toilet for half an hour? It was a game she played often, and she was determined never to lose. It was time to call in the gang.

Antonio stood in his kitchen, hopping without realising from one foot to the other. He bore holes in his phone screen with the intensity of his gaze, willing it to light up on its own and tell him what he should do.

He knew what he should do, but actually going about communicating with Lovino was growing more embarrassing with every moment they didn't talk. He knew what he wanted to do, but he wasn't sure if allowing Francis near him with possibly copious amounts of alcohol was a good idea or not in his current state of mind. Who knew what secrets he'd end up spilling?

In the end, it was Francis he called. His day required alcohol to deal with, and a friendly face to untangle.

"Hey 'Tonio!"

"Hey, glad you picked up. You meet up somewhere? I'm in the mood for a drink."

"Sweet, I'm up for that. Hey, do you mind if I bring someone along? It'll be a good surprise, honest."

"Sure. See you about...? Seven?"

"Yep, I'll meet you at yours. Bye!"

"See you, Francis."

* * *

**AN - 'Sup, people! Only a little bit late, heh heh... heh? School is busy at the moment, but I've been writing where I can. 'I'm Not A Virgin' should be updating soon as well!**


	5. More Drunken mishaps

Whoever Antonio had been expecting Francis' surprise to be, another old school friend was not it. When he opened the door five hours after the phone call with Francis, he was expecting a cute girl/boy of some sort, or perhaps even, if the world was truly against him, Lovino (in an effort by Francis to be helpful, because they'd exchanged another call between the first and now, when Antonio spilled everything before he'd even touched any alcohol.).

An albino, red eyed German wearing a 'I Heart Prussia' was not it. He was perched over Francis' shoulder, white hair flopping over his eyes in a fashion he clearly believed was cool and his mouth pulled into a shit-eating smirk. Laughing, he thrust his hand out for Antonio to shake. His entire forearm was covered in plastic charity bands and leather bracelets that twisted and jingled as he moved; Antonio thought he could hear the sound of a bell in there too.

Antonio shook his hand, offering his trademark sunny smile with it.

"It's been a while, Gil." The man, Gil, inclined his head and laughed again.

"That is has been, 'Toni! So, losers, are we drinking or not?"

On the way to Antonio's usual bar, he was filled in on his old school friends' lives since they'd split ways three years ago.

The three had been the best of friends at their high school, inseparable from each other and known from their madness, badness, and down right attractiveness. The terror of all teachers, the 'Bad Friends Trio' had caused 5 years worth of mischief, growing more and more adventurous as they grew older. But all good things must end and the boys had disconnected from each other after starting college.

Francis had moved back to study in his home town in France, but had apparently returned on a student job offer. The pizza delivery was just a side to pay for the rent while he stayed. He'd met Gilbert again at the pizza shop, as Gilbert had also found himself in a job there after his brother started dating the manager's grandson. (Antonio wasn't sure how this wrangled _Gilbert Beilschmidt _a job anywhere, but he didn't dare ask any further.) Gilbert had gone to a college near their old school, unlike Antonio, who moved further up the country and in fact knew Lovino – he was the pizza shop manager's other grandson.

By the time they reached the bar it was as if they had never been apart. The only difference was the choice of drinks.

By 10 o'clock, all three young men were off their heads on bad vodka and spilling all their dirty secrets to each other. Antonio had cried over Lovino more than he cared to admit but he had finally pushed the weight off of his chest and had even gained some helpful advice from Francis, who was apparently wise in the ways of stubborn types. (No-one asked why, and Francis let nothing slip. It was the only thing Antonio still didn't know by the end of the night.)

By midnight, or possibly one in the morning, Gilbert had fallen into the dance floor, abandoning the other two in search of a willing body to grind against. He must have found one, as neither of the others saw him again until the next day, when he was wandering around like a lost puppy wearing a t-shirt with a painted maple leaf on it. The lucky girl had left it at Gilbert's flat and according to Gilbert, had stolen his I heart Prussia shirt.

By what was most likely three in the morning, Francis and Antonio decided they should go home. They then were accosted by a gaggle of scantily clad women in pink killer heels who demanded they dance with them, and who were two young men to deny the advances of pretty women? Francis ended up in the ladies' toilets with one particular blonde who he maintained that he recognised and did not emerge for 20 minutes. He returned without her.

By four, they left a taxi as a tangle of limbs, trying to hold each other up and stop the other falling into the road. None of the Pink Heeled ladies were anywhere to be seen.

By five Antonio was fast asleep alone in his hallway, sprawled messily across his carpet with one shoe missing, his hair painted green on one side and ink stains scribbled up both arms.

So it was to a killer hangover and a mouth tasting like a sewer would smell had it had a large amount of vodka dropped into it that Antonio awoke. He didn't bother trying to open his eyes; he knew it would just make everything worse, make the lights more painful than the muted colours behind his eyelids already were and the headache feel like a power-drill rather than a steady drum beat. At least he was still wearing most of his clothes, he figured, as the last time he managed to drink himself into that deep an oblivion he had awoken naked with his arms around a thin waist and a mouth full of red hair. In no way was Antonio keen to repeat that particular morning (unless the waist happened to belong to a certain Italian. Then he might be persuaded to relive it.)

Antonio was still musing over previous morning afters and wondering if he could be bothered to physically move and find some painkillers when a knock came at the door. It was a small noise, barely a rap, and Antonio wouldn't have even heard it had he not been laying a foot from the door. As it was, he finally opened his eyes, wincing at the sharp assault of sunlight from his still open curtains and peeled himself up off of the carpet. It left a prickling feeling across his cheek as the skin pulled away pink, raw and imprinted with Carpets4Every1!'s cheapest weave pattern that he couldn't help but rub at as he opened the door.

He stopped the movement involuntarily as he realised who was standing outside of his apartment, letting his hand fall to his side.

Lovino was hopping from one foot to the other with his head bowed down, hand stuck into the jumbo pocket in the front of his hoodie. As Antonio watched him in stunned silence, one hand crept up into his hair, where he pulled absently on a fly-away strand that never seemed to tame down. Behind him the corridor was empty, no opening doors or stressed out, pacing students, and so it became even quieter than it normally would have been.

When the silence had manifested itself into something that would probably need to be cut with a sword, Antonio moved to the side of the doorway, gesturing for Lovino to come inside without a word. Lovino ducked his head a little as he entered, and Antonio's mouth felt as dry as the desert. Any thoughts that entered his head just seemed to fly straight out again – even when he tried clearing his throat, the action just seemed to stick there in an awkward lump. He just couldn't make the words _work_; Lovino looked so effortlessly gorgeous in that baggy hoodie and those running shorts and Antonio himself was, oh _shit_, he hadn't showered and he probably smelt _awful_, like a bar...

Antonio startled out of his daydream as he heard Lovino cough and breathe in to say something. He pulled his eyes up to Lovino's face, where he met glassy hazel eyes.

"Look, I know I shouldn't have run out on you, but you were a jerk too, you know, you bastard, you wouldn't speak to me either, and I did want this to work, I, I l-like, you and- oh, you know what, fuck it. C-come here and kiss me, bastard." With his last words, Lovino reached up to Antonio's face, grabbing his jaw and pulling him down so they were eye to eye. After a few heated seconds, they moved together slowly, at first their lips just brushing gently. Antonio had a strange jolt of deja vu. The last time the two had kissed, they had been in similar surroundings, although this time the sobriety was lending the kiss a healthy dose of nervousness.

Lovino pulled away after another few seconds, frowning slightly. Antonio was a little worried until Lovino batted him in the side, furrowed eyebrows shadowing over a cheeky smirk.

"Go brush your teeth, you stinking bastard, I'm not kissing you properly again until you're fucking squeaking with cleanliness!"

Antonio did, and Lovino was true to his word.

* * *

AN - Hello again! Sorry, more slow updates...


	6. Eliza is a boy stalker

Eliza laid outstretched on her bed, her hair fanning out around her head and her arms held up in the air above her. A small phone was nestled in the palms of her hands and she flicked across the screen with her thumb every few seconds. A series of images flashed on the screen as she did so, but none seemed to catch her fancy, as she barely lingered on any for more than a brief second of contemplation. After a solid ten minutes of this action, she sighed deeply, blowing a huff of hair up into the locks of hair that had floated down into her face and brought her arms down outspread either side of her body.

The blue screen light threw strange shadows across her body and the walls of her bedroom, which was otherwise in pitch blackness. The curtains were drawn over a midnight sky, blocking out any possible traces of moon light.

"This is hopeless," she muttered to herself darkly. "Utterly and totally hopeless." The phone trilled from where it was situated inside her curled fingers. The buzzing made Eliza jump, and she scrambled to sit upright, bashing her head onto the wall behind her in her flailing. "Ow..." When she stilled, she cradled the phone in her lap, eyes wide and staring at the unimposing words on the screen.

_Bella _I THINK I FOUND HIM ELI I THINK I MANAGED TO FIND HIM

Eliza squealed happily, a wide grin breaking out across her face. She tapped out a lightning fast reply.

_Eliza_ what really?!

_Bella_ YEAH DEFINITELY. BUUUUUUT I THNK HE MIGHT BE DATNG MY COUSIN. HE ACTED SUSPICIOUS AND BLUSH-Y WHEN I MENTIONED HIM. ISSUE? Y/N

_Eliza_ not an issue I repeat not an issue!? still eyecandy nooo? So who is he

_Bella_ Antonio Fernandez Carriedo, Spanish in origin, gorgeous and v gay. In college atm. I have pics courtesy of the cousin

_Eliza_ WOAH they arent dirty though are they

_Bella_ nope sorry. But clear enough to see his face

_picture file attached – _

The picture file attached showed a young man leaning both elbows on a kitchen counter, all too obviously aware that he was being photographed but clearly trying to act casual. A wistful, if subtly embarrassed smile graced his features as he looked out of the window in front of him, hands wrapped around a decorated mug. Eliza immediately recognised him as person who had camped out in the shop toilet.

Her curiosity had taken over her after the man had left, and she was determined to find out exactly why he had stolen away in the toilet (although his tanned, toned body may have had more than a slight influence in her plans). Eliza wanted to make a whole web of rumours and stories and to know about all the ins and outs of her social circles. She knew about her brother's neighbour's friend's affair with his girlfriend's best friend, and had a skill for matchmaking that her friend's took advantage of more than they would ever admit. With Bella's discovery, it looked as if her latest curious itch was going to find itself being scratched.

This fact in mind, Eliza's smile grew wider as she replied again.

_Eliza_ THATS HIM YES

_Bella_ Knew it :DD

_Bella_ We need to... arrange a visit yes?

_Eliza_ definitely!

_Eliza_ but how? we need a decent excuse, not like last time

_Bella_ Last time wasnt the worst time

_Eliza_ pretty bad tho

_Bella_ True... I have a plan!

_Eliza_ better be good ;)

_Bella_ Well. I happen to know that the cousin Lovino is intending to visit Antonio tomorrow, then bring him back to his. We can ambush them there.

_Eliza_ what if they stay at Antonio's?

_Bella_ I know Lovino, he'll have left a note for his brother saying where he is. We can follow the instructions on the note.

_Eliza_ hella yeah... lets do this

_Bella_ I'll make up an excuse to visit. Meet at mine at 10 yeah

_Eliza_ sure! this is gonna be epic

_Bella_ See you tomorrow!

_Eliza_ yeah, see yyou B!

Eliza flopped back down in the star-fish position she had been laid in before, only this time her expression was smug and satisfied. Scrabbling around under the covers on the bed, she pulled out a set of headphones, plugged herself in and let herself drift off to sleep. The next day was going to be... interesting.

The next day arrived with Eliza trying to cram her entire morning ritual into the space of 20 minutes whilst Bella stood in the doorway offering unhelpful commentary, having let herself in with the spare key. Her dirty-blonde bob was immaculate, not a single hair out of place, and her purple dress swung neatly above her knees; unlike Eliza's green one, which was residing where she had flung it the previous night, draped across the top of her ratty sofa. Eliza hopped into the living area from the bathroom with one leg through her tights and the hand not trying to pull the other one up dragged a brush through her mane of dark hair. The only other item of clothing she wore was a pale pink bra.

"Come on, Eli, Lovino'll have left for Antonio's by now, we have to get going!" Bella stalked over to the sofa and picked up the dress, brandishing it at Eliza who bit her lower lip guiltily.

"Sorry B, I know, I overslept... But Rod came online and you know that I never get time to speak to him..." She managed to wrestle her tights all the way on and pulled the dress out of Bella's hands. "Have you seen my flowers? I swear the vase was on the table...!"

Bella sighed with a smile, and gestured silently to where the vase of lilies rested on a small table behind Eliza.

"Ah, thanks!" Eliza pulled the dress over her head, letting the loose material flow around her thighs. She pulled the pinkest lily out and tucked it behind her ear. "Right, let's go find us a story."

She flounced out of the door without a backwards glance, leaving Bella to follow and shut the door behid her.

When the two arrived at Lovino's room, the painted red door was swung wide open, and loud music spilled out into the hallway. Eliza hesitated, but Bella pushed past her and poked her head around the door frame.

"Knock, knock!" she called out, "Feli, that you?"

An answering, "Sì!" came from inside, followed by a yelp of pain and a barrage of muddled Italian and English. The music stopped abruptly. Bella frowned, and made to move inside, but before she had taken a single step, a grinning face appeared in front of them. His hair was neat, but for a few flyaway strands and a smudge of what Eliza assumed to be flour that trailed down from his hairline to his cheekbone. It was dusted all over his apron as well, and some had landed on his bare feet. Bella embraced the young man quickly, then brushed the flour off his face with a wry smile.

"Pizza again, Feli? Sorry if I made you break anything..."

"Nope, pasta! And no again, I'm fine, I just dropped the radio. And... Hello, I'm sorry, I don't think I've met you before, Bella's friend?" Feli held out a thankfully un-floured hand for Eliza to shake.

"Oh, I'm Elizabeta, but please, call me Eliza. You're Feli, right, Lovino's brother?"

"Si, Eliza! Nice to meet you. Now, can I help you at all?"

Eliza and Bella shared an identical look, complete with matching raised eyebrows. Feli peered curiously between the two. Noticing his confusion, Bella turned back to face him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Do you know where Lovino is? I'd hoped to talk to him about the details for Abel's birthday thing tomorrow, and whether he's going to bring someone with him. It's pretty important. Also, I assumed you'll be coming with Monika?"

Feli flushed a little and nodded. "Monika is coming, I hope! She's a bit under the weather... I have a feeling that Lovi will be coming with Antonio though! If you want to go see him about it, he said he's over at Antonio's now. I'll give you the address, hang on..."

He headed back inside, leaving Eliza and Bella by the door. After a minute of paper rustling and a few mysterious thumps, Feli returned with a scrap of paper clutched in his hand. He handed it to Bella, who scanned over the address scrawled across the top in purple ink, with a 'I'll be here if you need me, but don't wait for me to make lunch, idiot!' added at the bottom.

"Thanks!" said Bella, folding the paper up and slipping it into her small shoulder bag. "We best be off then. Do you know how long ago Lovino go?"

Feli thought for a moment, his eyebrows knitting as he frowned slightly. "Um... I think it must have been about twenty minutes ago? Not long. It takes about ten minutes to get over there."

"Right, thanks Feli. See you tomorrow, yeah?"

"Si! Ciao Bella."

When Eliza was sure that Feli had shut the door and that the music had started again, she raised an eyebrow at Bella.

"Really. Abel's _important _party, that's your excuse?"

"Well, it's not really, I **do** need to know since I'm sorting out catering..."

* * *

AN - Hi... I would have posted this weeks ago but a. the first version I wrote I hated and deleted, and b. I've had mock exams and stuff so this has been ready for days and I just haven't... you know... actually posted it.


	7. Cockblocked by Girls

"A-Antonio, please, _ahhhn_, _please..._" moaned Lovino quietly as Antonio skimmed gentle fingers across his bare skin. Their lips hovered inches from the other's, sharing the same heated air in shallow, heaving breaths, Lovino unable to stop the stream of mixed moans and words spilling from his. Antonio grinned in a lazy fashion.

He'd overcome his nervousness of the whole 'kissing Lovino' situation approximately half an hour ago and now. Well, now he thought he may be addicted to the taste of olive skin and orange shower gel. He licked his lips and the tip of his tongue flickered over Lovino's mouth, causing a groan of frustration to rumble up Lovino's chest. Laughing, Antonio spread his hands wide across Lovino's soft stomach and sharp hips, feeling the rise and fall of hitched breathing under his fingertips.

"Tonio, stop teasing and _do_ something already, or I swear I'll... I'll... _Oh, do that again!_" Antonio worried at the skin of his jaw line, but stopped to croon in Lovino's ear in a raw, husky voice.

"Or you'll do what, Lovi? Kiss me? Because I really wouldn't mind if you did, you know." Lovino prised his hands from their grip on Antonio's hips and laced them through his hair instead, rolling his eyes in frustration at the ceiling. Goddamn Antonio and his fucking _saint-like patience _and his definitely _not_ saint-like ability to keep him permanently seated on the edge of burning arousal. How he knew exactly where to touch and kiss and lick and bite was beyond Lovino, but if he could just drag his mind out the clouds that his ecstasy had thrown him into, then he was going to show Antonio precisely what he would do to him. A hands on experience-

Muffled talking echoed in from outside the front door of the small room. Antonio's head whipped around to the door, as if expecting to see someone standing there. When no knock or call came, he continued mouthing at Lovino's neck in short motions, a touch of lips on skin before they flitted to somewhere else.

Outside Antonio's door stood Eliza and Bella.

They were arguing. It was the same argument that they'd been having for the past half an hour and it showed no signs of abating. However littered with the kind of scathing insults that only friends could come up with it was, the fight was nevertheless a very quiet one, as neither wanted to alert the people inside the apartment of the commotion occurring feet away from them.

"Bella, this is not a good idea. In fact, this is probably the worst idea you could've possibly come up with. Even worse than the one with the pizza guy and the pineapple chunks, and that one you came up with drunk on vodka shots!"

"Do you want to meet this guy or not? Plus, it's not like we haven't 'visited' random people's houses before. In fact, wasn't it you who made me climb up that drainpipe at one in the fucking morning to creep on the guy from Luxembourg? You're just getting cold feet."

"That was different! Ish... We need a better cover than 'are you coming to Abel's party' because duh, we could've waited until Lovino came home!"

"Oh come on, Feli was totally okay with giving away his address so he must know the guy already. Now stop being a wimp."

"But-"

"No, just knock! I'll make it work, don't worry."

"Fine. I just really hope I get a glimpse of sweaty, half-naked, clearly-interrupted-in-the-middle-of-fucking boys for this."

Eliza unfolded her arms from where they had been pressed tightly against her chest and flicked a curl of hair away from her face. Bella smirked. Her foot was tapping an impatient rhythm onto the hard floor. Stepping forwards, Eliza rapped on the door twice, then quickly moved back to stand beside Bella. Nothing happened. Bella turned to face Eliza, who just shrugged, hands raised at chest level in the universal gesture for 'don't look at me like that, it's not my fault'.

"Knock again then!" hissed Bella.

Eliza wrinkled her nose, affronted. "No, you can this time. You want to be here too, so you knock now. All we've got to do is see if it's him, that's it. Go!"

"Oi, no, you!"

"Bella, you are seriously no fun-"

Neither girl had noticed the noise of the door hinges creaking open, but both quickly stopped their argument at the cough from the figure leaning on the door frame with a slight frown marring his forehead. They spun around from facing each other, startled, then both opened their mouths to speak at once.

"I swear this isn't what it's going to look like-"

"Oh, hi, you must be Antonio right-"

Antonio wrenched his mouth from Lovino's collarbones at the rap of knuckles on the door. A frustrated huff came from Lovino, and he pushed with light fingertips on the back of Antonio's neck, nails scratching at the hairline.

"Just ignore it, pretend we're not in... Come on, idiot, we have much better things to be doing than entertaining whoever's interrupting us now of all times." said Lovino, widening his eyes. With a frown, Antonio shook his head.

"No, let's find out what they want, yeah? Then we can, you know, carry on." Antonio tried to use his best placating voice, but at the unimpressed set of Lovino's mouth, he knew it had just sounded like a plead. Lovino pushed him away.

"Go on then. But come back quickly, for God's sake!"

Antonio scrambled off the sofa. Pulling on the shirt hanging over the arm rest in a well practised motion, he schooled his expression into one less irritated and more vaguely polite. Ignoring Lovino's grumbles from behind, he eased open the door to see two girls, both about the same age as him, arguing loudly. The brunette looked familiar in a way that Antonio couldn't place for the life of him, but he decided that he must have just seen her around the college. When neither acknowledged his presence, he leant on the door frame and coughed pointedly into a fist. The two spun around to face him and spoke at the same time. One word stood out from the noise only; his name. Astonished, he blurted out the first words that came to mind.

"You know my name?"

* * *

**AN - Hey I return, but please don't hurt me for this awful update... I've been busy starting yet more writing projects oops.**

**An all texting JeanMarco fic anyone?**


	8. A Sunlit Conversation about Labels

Eliza froze as the young man, Antonio, uttered the question "You know my name?", and felt her heart drop through her stomach. A faint sickness burned through her throat, of embarrassment, or panic, or something that felt remarkably like guilt.

Whilst she was trying to drag her thoughts back down from the panicked storm clouds they had swirled into, Bella already had her game plan and had pasted on her game face. She smiled widely, tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and stuck out a hand for Antonio to shake. He did so warily.

"I'm Bella, and I really sorry if I interrupted anything important, but I need to speak to Lovino and his brother said I'd be able to find him here...? I'm his cousin." said Bella. Antonio opened the door fully, and called out to someone, whom Eliza assumed was Lovino, inside the apartment.

"Lovino, there's a Bella out here, your cousin?" Eliza couldn't make out the reply, but it sounded short and most likely rude from the apologetic expression on Antonio's face when he turned back to face them.

"Ah, I'm sorry, he... well I won't say what he did but I'm sure you can guess... Did you want me to ask him anything?" Antonio leant back against the door frame and the look of mingled terror and confusion had faded from his face. It had been replaced by a sunshine smile that Eliza couldn't quite look at without feeling her face heat up. In the back of her mind, she wondered if he even knew if he was doing it.

Bella nodded. "I'm holding a surprise party for Abel tomorrow, my brother, and I've been planning this for months and I really need to check in with people for last minute details. If you could, can you ask him to email me about the explosive balloons-" she laughed at the shock on Antonio's face. "Not literal explosives, chill! They just pop and cause a load of confetti to fly everywhere, Lovino was organising them. I really need to know if Lovino has got 'em sorted so that I can set up the room for tomorrow. And, do you mind if I be cheeky and ask if you intend to come with Lovino?"

Antonio blushed up to his ears and ducked his head. Eliza couldn't help but feel her heart squish a little at the cuteness this young man was displaying. It made her want to see her own boyfriend again.

Bella thanked Antonio and they said goodbyes. He whipped behind the door, still blushing, and Eliza caught the smile breaking out across his face behind the hand covering his mouth. The two girls high-fived and walked back down the corridor.

"See, it wasn't that hard. Are you happy now?" asked Bella.

"Excellent." said Eliza briskly.

Antonio's back slid down the door, his hand still covering his grin until he hit the floor, when he tipped his head back and laughed and laughed in an irrational burst of happiness.

Lovino's cousin must have known they were together to ask, in different words, if he was going to be Lovino's date at this party, and that meant that Lovino had to have told someone who in turn told for the girls, for them to know – and there was the little bubble of joy sitting light in Antonio's heart. Lovino had spoken about him, told his brother that he would be with Antonio. That he was with Antonio, and he hadn't been ashamed or scared or worried about being with him. That small, insignificant fact had made Antonio's day and he couldn't stop smiling.

His smile only grew as Lovino wandered over to him from the sofa and eased himself down beside him, not saying a word, instead laying his head on Antonio's shoulder and pressing their sides together. The heat from earlier was lost, but it had been replaced by a warm comfort that he could feel radiating through him, starting at the point where warmth from Lovino's bare skin seeped through his t-shirt. The sun continued to rise higher in the sky as they sat in silence together on the floor, brightening the whole flat with a yellow glow.

Sunlight shone around the two plain mugs sitting haphazard in the sink and through the glass cups resting on the window sill, throwing white patterns up the walls and across the table. It touched upon the stack of papers scattered in the way distinctive to a hard night of studying along the entire width of the coffee table and brushed the highlights of Lovino's hair, scorching them a hypnotic auburn that Antonio couldn't tear his gaze from, entranced by the streaks of colour.

Antonio cleared his throat.

"So." he began, but he couldn't find the words to continue. Lovino's head twitched on his shoulder in recognition of his word, but didn't move, waiting for Antonio to carry on.

"About what the girl, Bella, said... You heard, right?" Antonio tried not to stammer, licking his lips as nerves parched his mouth. His tongue felt too big and his cheeks dry. He felt Lovino's smile on his shoulder from the subtle movement in his jaw and was struck by the simple intimacy of the notion.

"Yeah." Lovino coaxed. "I did. What about it?"

Antonio licked his lips again. He needed a drink. The glass of water he never finished was still sitting on his window sill.

"Am I... What are we, now? Am I your, your plus one?"

The silence was thick now, and not nearly as comforting for Antonio as it had been before. But Lovino was still curved into his body, still relaxed and limp, so it couldn't be as bad as he thought.

Lovino laughed, and it was short and barely there at all. It sent Antonio's head spinning and his heart began to melt to mush in his chest.

"Of course, idiot, what else would you be?"

"I was... Well I was thinking of a different word really..." Antonio flushed. Why couldn't he just say it, the word wasn't hard, it was 2 syllables, why couldn't he say it?

"What do you mean? Are you asking me-" Lovino frowned and Antonio didn't want that, couldn't stand it if Lovino was confused or worried, and so he pulled away slowly to dislodge Lovino from his shoulder, spinning to face him directly.

"I think I'm asking you if you're my.. . My _boyfriend._" There. He'd said it, no matter how much work it had taken for him to spit it out. Antonio watched as the frown slid off Lovino's expression, to be replaced by a wheel of emotions. His eyes grew wide in astonishment, then he ducked his head and bit his lip in a subtle embarrassment, before smiling a smile that finished off Antonio's heart completely in pure joy.

"Yes, alright, _fuck yes, _now you better get down here and kiss me or so help me I will- mmmmfph!" Antonio crushed their lips together in a remarkably chaste way, despite what they had done earlier, winding his hand around the back of Lovino's neck and scratching his fingers into the short, soft hair curling up slightly at the nape. Both their eyes slid closed and when Antonio started to chuckle, Lovino was caught up in his infectious glee. They fell into each other and their bodies were pushed together like the two perfect puzzle pieces, moving and swaying in one rhythm.

At least, until the fire alarm went off and the sprinklers drenched them both in a spray of freezing water.


	9. Things we found in the fire

All hell broke loose as the ringing echoed in a piercing thrum throughout the building. Screams of surprise filtered through the thin walls to Lovino and Antonio, who were spluttering and heaving themselves upright. Antonio's hand was wrapped around Lovino's wrist as he helped him scramble to his feet, and he could feel the frantic fluttering of Lovino's pulse under his fingertips, which both scared him half to death and made him, in some small way, feel very lucky. _He_ was the one close enough to Lovino to be able to feel his heartbeat, _he _was the person to get under his skin and _he _had the chance to see past Lovino's wall of brash reactions to the soft, emotional boy beneath.

"Come on," murmured Lovino, pushing a lock of damp hair out of his eyes. "We need to get to the fire escape. Where is it?"

Antonio opened the door, hand still clenched around Lovino's wrist. His knuckles were turning white from the pressure of his grip, but Lovino hadn't complained, so he let it stay there.

"This way." He pointed down the corridor to a set of double doors, through which students were lugging armfuls of papers and laptops. Most were talking loudly to their friends and were hurrying down the stairs, taking two steps at a time. They joined the crowd, but neither spoke. Instead, they both took comfort from being close to the other, pressing their shoulders together as they had been before the alarm sounded.

Lovino certainly wasn't the only one in the crowd minus a shirt, but he still garnered more than a few backwards glances. A group of blonde girls, all holding pink folders over their heads and squeaking when they had to run under a sprinkler, were blatantly staring. One pointed at him, giggling and batting her eyelashes. Lovino heard her laughter and flushed, the same deep pink that had spread across his cheeks when Antonio had kissed him first. A flare of jealousy burnt through Antonio's chest and he shifted his hand down to grab Lovino's hand instead of his wrist. He could still feel his _boyfriend's _pulse and the way it faltered in surprise when he caressed the skin on the inside of Lovino's thumb. The flare doused itself when Lovino pecked his cheek and whispered, "I was just embarrassed, you idiot, calm down. No need to get jealous." in his ear.

They had nearly reached the bottom of the staircase before they hit the smoke and the fire.

At first it was only a smell. The sharp, chemical scent of burning paint and the cloying tang of plastic melting, which Antonio couldn't quite place even as smoke. All around him noses began to wrinkle and people started to complain about the acrid smell permeating the air.

But next came the smoke itself. The grey wafts curled in from the lowest level floor doors, growing thicker and darker as they hurried quickly towards the doors. It crept up on them, tiny swirls of grey ash dissipated quickly, only to be replaced by a larger vortex which took a little longer than the previous to vanish. The smell intensified as well and became distinctive as smoke. People all around them began to scream and cry much louder than they had been before, and prayers in shaky, terror-filled voices filled the air, thicker and almost more frightening than the smoke which signalled the fire itself. It brought a dangerous reality to the situation, and for the first time, Antonio felt a pit of fear settle deep in his stomach as he imagined being trapped by roaring flames, unable to escape the building.

The dorms were old, almost the oldest buildings in the college, and were severely lacking in the health and safety department. The fire escape amounted to little more than the stairwell they were currently swarming down, which led to a thickly walled walkway about 50 meters long, which was not quite part of the structure of the dorms. It was protected from the elements by a layer of plastic roofing, so as to allow students to access the dorms from the main courtyard without being drenched in the rain. The left wall was actually the wall of the building itself and beams and waterproofed boards created the rest of the structure.

The crowd surrounding Antonio and Lovino had swelled in size, and was moving like a tidal wave towards the doors leading to the walkway. The heat was growing at a rate which matched the speed of the fear eating through Antonio's mind, and was he imagining things in paranoia or could he hear the crackling and roaring of flames clawing their way up brick and plaster walls?

His question was answered as soon as he and Lovino shoved themselves through the doors.

The flames hadn't quite reached the walkway yet, but they were trying. Black smudges were beginning to show in the roof and the heat was suffocating, oppressive beyond anything Antonio had ever experienced. The wooden beams supporting the walkway were catching alight, and due to their age and the rot set deep inside them, flames were taking root in the wood at a dangerous pace. The ground floor was thick with smoke and Antonio could see the glow of the fire from behind the relative safety of the windows in the walkway.

He squeezed Lovino's fingers, where they were still intertwined with his own and hurried down the walkway, feeling fear and frustration bubbling in his chest. They weren't moving quickly enough as part of the crowd; too many people were attempting to rush through much too small a space for there to be any speed, and the fire was steadily making its way through the boards and beams.

The smoke had infiltrated the walkway through the double doors, thick and choking. It floated in lazy streams through the air, poisoning the oxygen supply with its deadly fumes. Antonio couldn't help but breathe it in, and as it settled heavy in his lungs and seared his sinuses, the nagging fear he'd felt accumulating flared into fully blown panic. He coughed as much of the smoke out of his system as he could, trying to ignore the rattling breaths and hitched crying of all of the other students around him. He focused on the feel of Lovino's smaller fingers wrapped tightly in his, on the memory of the faint taste of coffee on Lovino's tongue, on Lovino's laugh as he'd assured him that he did want to be his partner – anything other than the growing panic of his peers which he could feel feeding his own into a wildfire of a different sort.

The plastic roofing was blackening and curling under the fire's assault, surrendering to the heat of the flames. Antonio was so close to the doors signalling the end of the walkway and their escape from the fire that he could taste the clean air on his tongue. He smiled, a strained not-quite-a-grin of relief, then pulled on Lovino's wrist in a silent request to hurry.

They fell out of the doors together, heaving and coughing in a futile attempt to rid their lungs of smoke, hands still clasped. Lovino licked his lips with a dry tongue, relief and excess adrenaline leaking into his breathless laughter. His laughter was infectious and Antonio found himself chuckling alongside him, looking without watching as his home burnt before him.

* * *

AN - I was on holiday, so this is late. Don't hurt me please!

Aaaaaalso, wow fuck a duck sideways, over 2500 views? *faints dead* Oh. My. God. Thank you everybody!


	10. Alcohol fuzzes cause unbalanced dancing

"Look, give that here, I'll do it. You're going to end up hurting yourself."

"Fine- Ow! Be careful, it's pretty tight as it is. Too small."

"Your hands are really big, you know that, right?"

"What does that even mean?"

"Stop fidgeting, I swear to God you arse, or I'll end up strangling you."

"Don't be mean, Lovi, you wouldn't- OW!" Antonio pouted, but stopped twitching under Lovino's hands.

"See, I told you I would." Lovino, a smug smile scrunching his nose as he finished fiddling with the material of Antonio's tie, took a step back and flicked a glance up and down his handy work. "Good enough, I suppose. I'd get you in a better suit, but... You look... _okay_ in this. It's only a party."

"Lovi, you know I can't afford an... an _armani_ suit, or something!" Antonio pulled self consciously on the knot of the black tie where it pressed snugly into his neck. He shuffled on one foot, avoiding Lovino's eyes and trying to ignore the designer label of Lovino's own suit.

Lovino's smile dropped into a frown and he huffed, resting a hand on his cocked hip. "I said you'd do with what you've got. And, it'd only end up getting filthy on the floor."

"On the...?"

Lovino raised one eyebrow, hip still cocked.

A flash of understanding hit Antonio.

"Oh, Lovi, that's... Really?" He felt his cheeks flush at Lovino's insinuation and his imagination threw a veritable river of white-hot images at his mind: of Lovino peeling the suit off his skin, tugging hard on the tie and dragging him down into a kiss, Lovino sprawled across the bed in only the now crumpled dress shirt he'd been so meticulous in ironing only minutes before...

He shook his head and brought himself back down to earth before he embarrassed himself any more. The pair were late enough for Lovino's cousin's birthday party as it was, and Lovino's flirting was not helping them go any faster. Not that he wasn't enjoying Lovino's attention in the slightest.

"Come on, let's get out of here." Lovino straightened the knot of Antonio's tie one last time, then spun on one heel and really, Antonio couldn't quite contain his thirst as his ass swayed in those stupid, stupid suit trousers. He had the distinct feeling that this was going to be a very trying evening.

* * *

By the time they had piled themselves into the awaiting cab outside, figured out exactly where the party was being held in the first place and then located the money to pay the driver, they were half an hour late. By the time they had stopped, paid the driver and Lovino had fixed Antonio's tie for the fourth time, they were an hour late and Antonio was dreading the stares he was going to be inflicted with for turning up late for the first outing he'd been on _with_ Lovino.

_What a brilliant first impression I'm about to make, _Antonio thought bitterly. Lovino caught the frown on his face and bumped his shoulder with his own.

"Stop worrying. It's not a huge sit-down meal or anything, it's just music and a bar. There's loads of people coming, no-one'll even notice us."

"I'd be surprised if everyone's there, after... last week."

"Why wouldn't they be?" Lovino furrowed his brow, head cocked to the side.

Antonio shrugged. "The fire. People might not have a home – I don't, technically-"

"I told you, you have a home when you're staying with me. Stop worrying about it." said Lovino, voice soft on the last sentence. "Let's just go inside, have a dance, then... then let's come home and fuck like rabbits, okay?" Antonio flushed up to his hair line but grinned and nodded, avoiding Lovino's eyes.

"Um, yeah. Okay, Lovi."

The party was just as Lovino had described. Located in the surprisingly spacious back room of a local pub, tables with fold out chairs and platters of food were pushed against the walls and a DJ sat with his feet propped up onto his deck. Music blared from the speakers and swirling lights sent colourful patterns across the makeshift dance floor in the centre of the room. The bar was manned by a rather more flustered barmaid, whose red hair-bows didn't appear to be doing anything useful to stop her hair falling into her face.

It took Antonio an hour of stressed knee jiggling and tie adjusting before he calmed down enough to drink his cider. But as Lovino had promised, the party was large enough that no-one other than Bella and a young man so plastered in yellow confetti that he had to be the birthday man (who was introduced as 'this dick is Abel, he won't bite unless you mock his bunny tattoo') noticed them enter the room, and no-one else bothered them except for people he knew, or at least vaguely knew of, anyway. Lovino's brother came over from the dance floor with a muscled blonde girl on his arm who towered above him. Antonio was more than a little intimidated by the woman, who nearly broke his hand with her handshake. Her name was Monika, and she was a rugby player, preened an incredibly tipsy Feliciano.

There was another woman however, sat with a friend at the bar, who jogged something small but somehow significant in Antonio's memory. He couldn't place where he knew her from, but he was sure he remembered her from _somewhere_. A scrappy ponytail hung down her back and her shoes were duct taped together, but her eyes were sharp under her glasses and her laugh loud, brusque and confident.

Lovino noticed his staring at her from over the top of his drink and leant in to whisper in his ear. It was easier than shouting over the music.

"You know her? You look confused." Antonio frowned and took a sip.

"To be honest, I'm not sure. She's familiar though. Maybe she's in one of my classes..."

"Could be." Lovino tapped the edge of his own glass and, after a moment of hesitation and a blink, pressed a kiss to Antonio's hair. Antonio started, then smiled.

"You get cuddly when you're drunk, don't you?" Lovino pouted and turned away.

"No! No way. Never. No cuddles." Antonio smiled into his cider, and said nothing. He watched the party goers go about their partying around him, just enjoying talking in low voices with Lovino, whose running, mostly biting commentary of every single person that walked past never failed to amuse him.

"She's a bitch, that one. Those heels are knives, I bet you."

"He ate a deep fried Mars Bar in Scotland on a bet with a mad Scotsman called fucking _Scott_ and then threw up on the guy's shoes. Never see him run so fast."

"Fucking nutjob, he can't even tie his own shoe laces without coming up with some elaborate tale of how he wrestled a shark while he did it."

"He fucks sheep. But not literally. I don't think."

"She's gayer than you are, and that's saying something-"

"I, I actually like girls physically as well, Lovi. I just only date other men." Antonio said quietly.

"Oh, you're not gay? Huh, bi then?" At Antonio's nod, Lovino grinned. "Me too. Oh wait, you see that girl in the pink heels? She can't-"

Antonio gasped, and Lovino span around to look at him in worry.

"What? Are you okay?" Antonio flapped a hand in dismissal, but kept his eyes trained on the pink heels. It was just out of reach, but if he could just think, he could remember-

"I know who she is, the girl by the bar! She was with Francis at the club, the night before..." He trailed off, remembering exactly what had happened the morning after the night at the club. Lovino didn't need to ask when he meant.

"Not that exciting then?" He asked instead.

"Nah, but it was annoying me, and now I know."

"Good. Now, come dance with me. I'm drunk and I like this song and I want you to dance."

Lovino sat his glass on the table and pulled Antonio up by the forearm, who wasn't resisting in the slightest. They jostled for a space on the dance floor, away from the groups of people dancing in circle, all facing each other. Instead, Antonio wrapped his arms around Lovino's waist, whilst Lovino entwined his fingers in the short hairs at the back of Antonio's neck, and they swayed together to the thrum of the music under the lights and the hazy happiness of the alcohol buzz.

Antonio decided he didn't mind not knowing anyone at this party. He had Lovino here, he had a place to stay for later and he had his friends beside him, and that was all he needed to be content.

He wouldn't remember the bruises on his toes from Lovino's tipsy swaying in a week anyway.

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**AN - OVER 3K HITS OH. MY. GOD. Thank you so much to every single person who has read this. **

**This is the last main chapter. Just an epilogue left, then I'm done. **


	11. Epilogue

**One year later**

It wasn't really much of a welcome home _party_ for Antonio. The kitchen had a limp 'Welcome back!' banner just about taped to the wall, and an equally pathetic bunch of multicoloured balloons wrapped around the door handle, one of which had deflated entirely – not to mention the cup of glitter that had been thrown (or more likely dropped) all over the kitchen worktop. It was tired, it was cheap, it was plain and yet Antonio was still over-joyed to see the meagre decorations, because it meant that he was _home. _He could see his under-enthusiastic brother and his over-enthusiastic sister, his mother, who had trouble seeing anything further away than her fingernails even with her glasses on, and his father, who had to deal with his mother, sister and brother on a regular basis.

But this year his Summer Welcome Home 'party' was going to be the best he would ever experience, because Antonio had managed to badger Lovino into coming to visit his family for the first time. It had taken far more wheedling and whining than he had either imagined or ever wanted, but both him and his boyfriend were finally at his home. He had just hoped that Lovino would eventually relax enough to enjoy himself; over a year of dating the closed off young man had taught Antonio that although Lovino acted tough, he became terribly shy when he encountered something he hadn't dealt with before.

But Antonio was in for a pleasant surprise. When his sister opened the door to greet them, Lovino had not whined, groused, or even frowned in any way, instead becoming polite and charming in the way he only usually was with people he was comfortable with being around. Even after only a quick introduction, it seemed likely that Lovino and his sister were well on their way to becoming friends.

"Lovino, this is Maya, my sister. Maya, this is Lovino, my boyfriend! Please, don't scare him off like you did with Ryan..." Antonio stood between the two of them, his smile sunny but wavering. Maya was a lot to take in for anyone who hadn't met her before; her dress was handmade, her combat boots laced up all the way to her knees and her dark hair was braided with a selection of bells and ribbons. But Lovino took it in stride, and held out a hand for Maya to shake, huffing out a quiet laugh as he did so.

"It's lovely to meet you, Maya. Your dress is very beautiful, did you make it yourself?" Maya looked Lovino up and down with a critical eye. Deciding for whatever reason that she accepted him, she shook his offered hand with a flourish and a winning smile that perfectly matched her brother's.

"Sí, Lovino, thank you for your kind words! Now, I'm sure you are fed up to the back teeth with my brother's incessant nattering, so please, come in and have a drink." All three headed inside into the kitchen, where Lovino laughed at the spilled glitter and Antonio slowly fell back into the familiar rhythms that come with being surrounded by family.

They met with Antonio's mother and father in an old-fashioned dining room. It wasn't an enormous space, but it was cold and airy from lack of use. However, it was the only space big enough to fit six people comfortably, so they'd made do. Six hard backed armchairs were arranged in a circle around the room, two of which were occupied by Antonio's parents. They were both sat next to each other and spoke in hushed voices, reserved but relaxed. Maya rapped her knuckles on the door frame to announce their presence, and Antonio's mother stood up from her chair, placing her drink in her husband's hand.

"Antonio! You're here, at last. And, oh, you must be Lovino? I've heard so much about you! Call me Noa." She wrapped Antonio in a hug and he closed his eyes, smiling softly. He missed his family dreadfully during his months away, since he couldn't afford to visit on regular weekends as many of his peers did. When he opened his eyes, he noticed the grey roots of his mother's hair and sighed. He was losing touch with them all and it hurt to think that he might lose them altogether.

Lovino looked down at his feet when they broke apart, and scuffed his shoes on the floor. Despite his shy appearance, Antonio could see the smile turning up his lips.

"I've heard a lot about you too. I'm glad I was invited." he said. Noa smiled, eyes warm, and looked Lovino up and down. Her mind made up, she whisked him into a hug that was just as tight as Antonio's had been, and whispered in his ear when he'd stopped floundering.

"You'll be good for my Toni. I can feel it."

She broke the hug and held Lovino out by his biceps.

Lovino felt the corners of lips turn up, not quite a smile, but nearly.

"I hope so." he murmured, and when he saw the delighted expression on Antonio's face, he knew that whatever it took, he'd do his damn best to keep hold of that smile forever.

It was brighter than the sunshine, and Lovino wanted nothing more than blue skies for the rest of his days.

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AN - And this is it. A journey and a half, much! My first (decent) multi-chaptered fic of over two chapters completed, with nearly 4k views at the current standing! I never believed I'd get this far, so THANK YOU. :)


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